Shoe viewing scope



Sept. 14, 1965 1.. w. WRIGHT ETAL 3,205,776

SHOE VIEWING SCOPE Filed June 6, 1963 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR5ZEOIYARD M I'VE/6197- BY LOU/6 a. BUSTEA W0 M p 1965 1.. w. WRIGHT ETAL3,205,776

SHOE VIEWING SCOPE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 6, 1963 INVENTORSLIFO/YARD M WRIGHT LOU/6 5. 51/5757? ATM/PNEY p 1965 1.. w. WRIGHT ETAL3,205,776

SHOE VIEWING SCOPE 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 6, 1965 INVENTORSLEO/YARD M IMF/6H7 LOU/6 B BUSTER BY W United States Patent 3,205,776SHOE VIEWING SCOPE Leonard W. Wright, 1226 Grove St., Marysville, Wash.,and Louis B. Buster, 607 Casino Road, Everett, Wash. Filed June 6, 1963,Ser. No. 285,976 1 Claim. (Cl. 8885) This application is acontinuation-in-part of copending application Serial No. 57,475 for aMirror Device, now abandoned.

This invention relates to a scope particularly useful for enabling aperson to view conveniently shoes being worn by such person, and isespecially useful for lady shoestore customers.

The principal object of the shoe viewing scope is to enable the wearerof shoes to see them in apparent elevated position at approximately theeye level of the wearer without the necessity of the wearer bending downor tilting her head down. A particular object is to enable the shoes tobe thus viewed in an attitude looking at them from a position somewhatabove them, generally comparable to the view which would be obtained bya person near the wearer.

Another object of the invention is to provide a scope which will affordthe wearer such a view of shoes being worn while obscuring the portionof the person above about the ankle or calf of the leg, so that theattention of the viewer will be concentrated on the shoes and feet.

A further important object is to provide such a shoe viewing scope inwhich the wearers feet and shoes will appear in erect or normalposition, instead of being inverted as they would appear in a periscope.

Still another object is to provide such a foot viewing scope ofeconomical construction but one which will have ample field of vision sothat the feet can be moved closer or farther from the viewer and turned,as may be desired, to enable the shoes to be viewed in differentattitudes, as well as during simulated walking. Such a scope can also beused conveniently by persons differing considerably in height and willeven enable more than one person to observe in it the shoes on aparticular wearer.

An additional object is to provide such a shoe viewing scope which canbe embodied in a free-standing cabinet or which can be incorporated intoa building structure. Whichever type of installation is used it is anincidental object to provide lighting which will illuminatesatisfactorily the shoes to be examined, but which will otherwise beshielded from the viewers eyes.

In general, a shoe viewing scope capable of accomplishing the foregoingobjects includes an upright enclosure providing in it an upright passagehaving an upper viewing opening at eye level, and a lower object openinggenerally in registry with shoes worn by the observer and located on thesame side of the enclosure. A lower foot-reflecting mirror is located inthe enclosure generally in registry with the object opening and an uppereye-viewing mirror is located within the enclosure generally in registrywith the viewing opening. An intermediate upright mirror is locatedelevationally between such upper and lower mirrors which are inclinedoppositely relative to such intermediate upright mirror. Suchintermediate mirror is located at one side of the upright passagethrough the enclosure, either at the side of the enclosure passagetoward which the upper and lower mirrors converge or at the oppositeside of the enclosure passage. In either case the intermediate mirrorwill be more nearly parallel to the lower mirror than to the uppermirror so that sight lines will be inclined downward from the lowermirror onto the upper portions of the shoes to be viewed from the top toa greater or lesser extent. The sides of the shoes adjacent to theenclosure 3,205,776 Patented Sept. 14, 1965 ice are illuminated directlyfrom a light source carried by and preferably located in the enclosure.

FIGURE 1 is a top perspective of the shoe viewing scope with partsbroken away, and FIGURE 2 is a longitudinal vertical section through thescope. FIGURE 3 is a diagrammatic view similar to FIGURE 2 with partsomitted to enable sight lines to be illustrated more conveniently.

FIGURE 4 is a top perspective of an alternative type of shoe viewingscope with parts broken away, and FIG- URE 5 is longitudinal verticalsection through such scope. FIGURE 6 is a diagrammatic view similar toFIGURE 5, but with parts omitted to facilitate illustration of sightlines.

As has been mentioned above, the shoe viewing scope of the presentinvention can be incorporated in a building structure such as in onewall of a shoe sales room, but the principles of such a scope areportrayed in the drawings as embodied in a free-standing cabinet. Ineither case the mirrors of the scope should be mounted in a lightproofenclosure so that the view in the scope will be concentrated on shoesbeing worn as the object of attention. The cabinet 10 forming theenclosure of the scope includes the bottom 27, the front, back and sides14, 16, 18 and 20 and the top 22 enclosing an upright passage. In thetop of the front 14 is a horizontal- 1y elongated viewing opening orslot 24 which preferably extends virtually from side-to-side of theenclosure. Adjacent to the bottom of the front 14 is an object openingor slot 26 elongated horizontally and which extends virtually from oneside of the enclosure to the other. To provide a firm and unyieldingarea on which the shoe wearer can stand a platform 28 preferably isprovided projecting outward from the front of the enclosure 10 and suchplatform can be secured to the enclosure by a piano hinge 29. When thescope is not in use such platform can be swung upward about the hinge tocover the object opening 26.

The scope is composed entirely of mirrors arranged in proper combinationwith the enclosure 10. Such mirrors include a lower planefoot-reflecting mirror 32 extending between the sides 18 and 20 andinclined upward away from the object opening 26, but disposed generallyin registry with such opening. The upper plane eyeviewing mirror 34,disposed generally in registry with the viewing opening 24, is inclineddownwardly away from such opening. This mirror also preferably extendssubstantially from one to the other of the cabinet sides 18 and 20. Theintermediate plane upright mirror 36 is located elevationally betweenthe lower mirror 32 and the upper mirror 34 in a position to transmit afoot image from the lower mirror to the upper mirror. The elevationaland angular relationship of the mirrors 32, 34 and 36 is important toenable the wearer looking at the mirror 34 to see the image of the shoesworn in the proper relationship, and in the desired proximity.

The importance of the relationship between the attitudes of the mirrors32, 34 and 36 in the shoe viewing scope is illustrated in FIGURE 3. Inorder that the shoe may be viewed as being substantially on the eyelevel of the wearer the upper lines of sight 37 from the eye of theviewer to the mirror 34 should be substantially horizontal. To enablethe top of the shoe to be seen, however, instead of the shoe beingviewed from floor level, it is important that the lines of sight 39 fromthe shoe to the mirror 32 be inclined from the shoe upward to themirror. In FIGURE 3 this angle of inclination to horizontal is shown asbeing approximately 20, but the mirrors could be arranged to provide agreater or lesser angle. The intermediate upright mirror 36, shown asbeing mounted on the enclosure back 16, must therefore be locatedelevationally between the mirrors 32 and 34 to transmit the sight linesbetween these mirrors by reflection so that the image of the shoesviewed in mirror 34 will appear in erect or normal position, instead ofbeing inverted. Such action of the intermediate mirror is illustrated bythe sight lines 38 which cross in front of the mirror. If such sightlines were transmitted simply in parallel relationship between themirror 32 and the mirror 34 the sight lines would cross only adjacent toeach of such mirrors, which would invert the image of the shoes. T heintermediate mirror 36 effects a third crossing of the sight lines toprovide an erect image.

In order to enable the shoe wearer to view the shoes at least partiallyfrom the top, as mentioned previously, it is necessary for the sightlines 39 between the shoes and the mirror 32 to be inclined downwardfrom the mirror, as shown, while the sight lines 37 from the observerseye to the mirror 34 are substantially horizontal. Such disposition ofthe sight lines 39 is accomplished by arranging the mirrors so that theangle between the reflecting surface of the intermediate mirror 36 andthe reflecting surface of the lower mirror 32 is smaller than the anglebetween the reflecting surface of the intermediate mirror and thereflecting surface of theupper mirror 34. Thus, in the illustration ofFIGURE 3 the reflecting surface of the upper mirror 34 is inclinedapproximately 60 to the reflecting surface of the intermediate mirror36, whereas the reflecting surface of the lower-mirror 32 is inclinedapproximately 50 to the reflecting surface of the intermediate mirror,placing the reflecting surface of the intermediate mirror more nearlyparallel to the reflecting surface of the lower mirror than to thereflecting surface of the upper mirror. Also, of course, these twomirrors are inclinedoppositely tothe intermediate mirror. The greaterthe difference in the angles between the intermediate mirror 36 and theupper and lower mirrors the greater will be the slope of sight lines 39,and consequently the more will the shoes be viewed from the top.

In order to enable the average lady to observe shoes whichshe is wearingin the shoe viewing scope, it is preferred that the. height of theviewing opening 24 above the platform 28 be approximately feet. Also, inorder to enable the shoes on both feet to be viewed at the same timefrom the side during simulated walkingand thus to determine the fit ofthe shoes, it is preferredthat the width of the enclosure front 14 be atleast 2 feet and preferably 2 /2 to 3 feet. The depth of the cabinetbetween the front 14 and the back 16 will probably also be 2 /2 to 3feet.

Because of the relatively narrow vertical width of the object opening 26the shoe viewing scope will reveal to the shoe wearer only the portionof the wearer below about the ankle or calf of the leg. Consequently,the

attention of the wearer will be focused on the shoes rather than on anyother portion of her dress. In order to enable the shoes to be observedeasily it is important that they be illuminated adequately and for thispurpose it is desirable'to build into the scope lighting directlyeffective to illuminate the platform 28 and shoes standing on suchplatform. Such illumination may be accomplished by a light box 40 builtinto the enclosure immediately above the object opening 26, shown inFIG- URES l and 2. Such lighting box includes a focusing re-- flector 42arranged'to focus onto the platform-28 light from a light fixture,suchas fluorescent tubes 44. The light thus projected onto the platform bythe reflector will illuminate the side of the shoes adjacent to theobjective opening 26, which otherwise would be inclined to be' theintermediate mirror.

sage Within the enclosure 18 so that the image of the shoes will notstand out sharply. Consequently, it is desirable to provide one or morebaffles between the mirrors 32 and 34 to prevent direct reflection oflight from the mirror 32 to the mirror 34, and diffusion of light to themirror 34 and the viewing opening 24 through the upright passage of theenclosure. For this purpose an inclined baifie 46 is shown extendingbetween the opposite sides 18 and 28 of the cabinet and a furtherhorizontal baflle 48 may be provided above the baffle 46. Such bafflemeans thus project toward the intermediate upright mirror 36transversely of such mirror and the upright passage into a positionclose to the intermediate mirror, for deterring direct passage of lightthrough the upright passage, while being spaced from the intermediatemirror so as to avoid obstructing transmission of the foot image fromthe lower mirror to the intermediate mirror, and from the intermediatemirror to the upper mirror past the baflie means. In addition, a flange50 may extend inward from the lower edge of the viewing opening 24 toform a further baflle. General reflection of light through the uprightpassage of the enclosure can be decreased further by painting theinterior surfaces of the cabinet, with the exception of the reflector 42and the mirrors 32, 34 and 36, dead black.

A lady wearing shoes to be seen in the scope will stand on the platform28, which is hard in contrast to carpeted floors normally provided inshoe sales rooms, so that the wearer may stand steadily and naturally.The platform is located adjacent to the scope so that shoes on suchplatform will be in proper range relative to the scope. The wearer maythen stand naturally in erect position, with head raised, while theshoes are observed in the mirror 34 on substantially eye level and thusmore conveniently than they could-be observed by the wearer eitherbending over or looking at the shoes in a single wall mirror. Thewearers shoes and feet will be seen in normal or erect position, as theywould be observed by a person adjacent to the wearer, but the imageappears much higher than the shoes would appear to such an observer.

In the'type of scope shown in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 the upright mirror 36is located between the nearer edges of the mirrors 32 and 34 or,expressed in another way, such mirrors converge toward the uprightmirror 36. An alternative and more compact mirror arrangement is shownin the scope of FIGURES 4, 5 and 6, in which the intermediate uprightmirror located elevationally between the upper and lower mirrors islocated generally intermediately between the farther edges of the upperand lower mirrors or, expressed in another way, the upper and lowermirrors converge in a direction away from In the shoe viewing scopeshown in FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 the cabinet is composed of a bottom 12',front, back and sides 14, 16, 18 and 20, and a top 22. In the upperportion of the front 18 is the viewing opening 24' and adjacent to thebottom of the front is the object opening 26'. These'various componentsand features are similar to those of the scope described in connectionwith FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, so that no further description of them shouldberequired. In this instance, however, the sides 18 and 20 of the cabinetare much narrower than the corresponding sides of the cabinet shown inFIGURES l, 2 and 3, because of the mirror arrangement utilized, so thatthe cabinet is much more compact than that of FIGURES l, 2 and 3,although the width of the viewing opening 24' and the object opening 26and the size of the platform 28 may be the same or comparable to thecorresponding features of the previously described cabinet.

In this instance the lower mirror 32 generally in registry with theobject opening 26 and the upper mirror 34' generally in registry withthe viewing opening 24 are spaced rearwardly from such respectiveopenings and from the front 14' of the cabinet. The intermediate uprightmirror 36' is mounted on the cabinet front instead of on the cabinetback 16', and faces rearwardly. Also, the mirrors 32' and 34' arearranged much more nearly vertical than in the scope of FIGURES 1, 2 and3. While the width and height of the cabinet may be comparable to thatof the cabinet 10 shown in FIG- URES 1 and 2, the depth of the cabinetbetween the front 14 and the back 16' may be of the order of 1% feetinstead of 2 /2 to 3 feet.

While in the shoe viewing scope of FIGURES 1, 2 and 3 the upper mirror34 is at an angle of 60 to vertical and 30 to horizontal, the angle ofthe upper mirror 34' in the scope of FIGURES 4, 5 and 6 is approximately30 to vertical and approximately 60 to horizontal. The mirror 32' isstill more nearly vertical than the mirror 34', being at an angle tovertical of approximately 12. In this instance, however, the directionof the sight lines between the shoe and the mirror 32 are approximately45 to horizontal, instead of approximately to horizontal, as in thescope of FIGURES 1, 2 and 3. The angle of such sight lines to horizontalcould be decreased to 20, if desired, by lowering the mirror 32 to theposition 32" and increasing its angle to vertical to approximately 22from approximately 12. The mirror in such case would still be morenearly vertical than the upper mirror 34'. Also, as indicated, it wouldbe necessary to increase the depth of the cabinet to some extent betweenthe front 14' and the rear 16'.

In the mirror arrangement of FIGURES 4, 5 and 6, as in the mirrorarrangement of FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, it will be seen that the reflectingsurface of the intermediate mirror 36' is always more nearly parallel tothe reflecting surface of the lower mirror 32' than to the reflectingsurface of the upper mirror 34' for effecting reflection of sight linesinclined downwardly from the reflecting surface of the lower mirror ontothe upper portion of the foot exposed through the object opening.

Alternatively, the depth of the enclosure for the scope of FIGURES 1, 2and 3 between the front 14 and the rear 16 can be reduced if the angleto the horizontal of the sight lines between the shoes and the lowermirror is increased, such as from 20 to 45 In this instance the mirror36 would be moved into the position 36a, shown in FIGURE 3, and thelower mirror 32 would be raised to the position designated 32a in thatfigure. While the mirror 36 is shown as being raised to the position 36asuch mirror could merely be moved in toward the front 14 of the cabinetif it were long enough. Also, it will be evident that where the angle ofthe sight lines between the object and the lower mirror are steeper thereflecting surface of the lower mirror is more nearly parallel to thereflecting surface of the intermediate upright mirror 36 or 36' whetherthe upper and lower mirrors converge toward the upright mirror, as inFIGURE 3, or converge away from it, as in FIGURE 6. In addition, wherethe sight lines from the object to the lower mirror are steeper it isnecessary for the object lower opening in the enclosure front to beincreased in height or to be raised.

If the sight lines from the shoes being viewed to the lower mirror areinclined sufliciently, such as the lines 39' of FIGURE 6 or 39a ofFIGURE 3, the light source for illumination of the shoes may be locatedbelow the object opening, as shown in FIGURES 4 and 5. In this instancethe light mounting partition 40' is located below the object opening 26'and the reflector 42' extends down to the bottom of the cabinet behindthe fluorescent light tubes 44. With this arrangement there is much lesspossibility of stray light escaping up through the upright passage ofthe cabinet because the light cannot shine onto the lower mirror 32. Theinterior of the cabinet, except for the mirrors 32, 34' and 36', shouldstill be painted dead black, however, and a horizontal baffle 48' and anupper flange 50' may still be provided to obscure random reflectionsfrom the platform 48' passing to the mirror 34, if desired.

The manner in which the alternate type of shoe viewing scope shown inFIGURES 4, 5 and 6' is used is similar to that in which the shoe viewingscope of FIG- URES 1, 2 and 3 is used, so that no further explanation ofthe operation of such alternative device should be required.

We claim:

A foot viewing scope comprising an enclosure defining therein an uprightpassage having in one side thereof an upper viewing opening and a lowerobject opening, an upper plane eye-viewing mirror in said enclosuredisposed generally in registry with said viewing opening, a lower planefoot-reflecting mirror in said enclosure disposed generally in registrywith said object opening, an intermediate plane upright mirror locatedin said enclosure elevationally between said upper and lower mirrors andat one side of said upright passage to transmit a foot image from saidlower mirror to said upper mirror, the reflecting surfaces of said upperand lower mirrors being inclined oppositely relative to the reflectingsurface of said intermediate mirror, and the reflecting surface of saidintermediate mirror being more nearly parallel to the reflecting surfaceof said lower mirror than to the reflecting surface of said upper mirrorfor effecting reflection of sight lines inclined downwardly from thereflecting surface of said lower mirror through said lower objectopening onto the upper-portion of a foot exposed through said lowerobject opening when the viewing sight lines between the observers eyeand said upper mirror through said upper viewing opening aresubstantially horizontal, and light baflle means at the side of saidupright passage opposite said intermediate mirror and projecting towardsaid intermediate mirror transversely of said intermediate mirror andsaid upright passage into a position close to but spaced from saidintermediate mirror to confine direct passage of light through saidupright passage within limits without obstructing transmission of thefoot image from said lower mirror to said intermediate mirror and fromsaid intermediate mirror to said upper mirror past said baffle means.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,539,836 6/25Hasty 8874 1,578,919 3/26 Quinn et al.

1,635,011 7/27 Sadler 8870 2,569,576 10/51 Ramme 8886 2,757,575 8/56Kovach.

2,940,358 6/ 60 Rosenthal 8885 3,012,478 12/61 Reyner 8878 3,060,794 10/62 Reading 8814.8

JEWELL H. PEDERSEN, Primary Examiner.

FREDERICK M. STRADER, Examiner.

